This is a review of The Flash by Mark Waid, Volume One. I have a soft spot for The Flash. I am not sure why this character speaks to me. Maybe it’s because The Flash is the first superhero comic I ever read. Or it could be because of The Flash’s rogue’s gallery, which is one of the best in superhero comics. Or maybe it’s the costume? It certainly isn’t Barry Allen’s personality, because he didn’t have one when I started reading his adventures back in the late 1970’s. No, my Flash is Wally West.
Let me explain. There are three Flashes who have starred in their own books – Barry Allen, Jay Garrick, and Wally West. I wasn’t around in the 1940’s when Jay Garrick was active. Wally became the Flash after Barry died (1980’s), which turned out to be a temporary setback. Originally, Wally was Kid Flash. I read Wally’s origins in the Silver Age Flash. You can see the review, here. Back then, Wally was a comic book writer’s idea of what a teenager in the 1950’s should be. The results were horrifying.
Mike Baron’s short run on Flash – read my review here – gave Wally a personality. He’s callow and self-centered, like most people who are twenty years old. Writer Mark Waid’s run takes place several years – or whatever passes for time in the DC universe – later. Wally is older and wiser. He’s still paying off debts accrued from when he won the lottery and blew it all.
Mr. Waid gives Wally a personality – blue collar, not a rocket scientist, always tries to do the right thing – and a love interest. Mr. Waid is good at evoking emotion. His style is upbeat, which in the early 1990’s was decidedly old school. Stories in this volume include an updated version of Wally’s origin; a team-up with Aquaman, The King of the Seven Seas; and a looong annual starring Eclipso, back when DC made Eclipso a super-powered serial killer. Also, a rejuvenated Abra-Kadabra, minus his skin.
Run to Comixology to get this volume!
Abandoned Places 